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Looking Back
Last Updated: January 17, 2019

50 years ago

A groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new Rusty Eck Ford auto agency building to be built in the 3800 block of North Broadway at the intersection of Highway 81 and Interstate 235. The building would be about 26,000 square feet total and would occupy the land that once held Ace Auto Salvage and Watkins Salvage.

The Valley Center Junior High band performed at the Kansas Music Educators Association convention under the direction of Dwight Beckham. KMEA president Kenneth Shaheen said the audition committee judged the band as being the most outstanding junior high band of those who submitted applications.


45 years ago

Preston Lorson moved his pub from its old location at 302 W. Main to a new building at Main and the Santa Fe tracks. The pub had only been in business for three years before the move. The new building added draft beer, a dance floor, central heat and air and an electronic air filter to keep smoke and dust at a minimum.

Southwestern Bell Telephone began work on a $39,000 service improvement project in its Valley Center office. Local manager Rick Enewold said equipment for 200 lines and 100 numbers would be installed to increase office capacity. The move came after Southwestern Bell added 480 telephones in the area in a three-year period.


40 years ago

Claudette Simmons and her daughters, Anita and Lisa, arrived in Valley Center following a long trip from Isfahan, Iran, because of a shortage of food and fuel. Additionally, the American school Anita and Lisa had been attending had been shut down. Claudette and her husband James worked for Bell Helicopter in Iran.

An expected confrontation failed to materialize at a USD 262 Board of Education meeting regarding the resignation of industrial arts teacher Gary Lembke. Lembke called several parents of his junior high and high school students in the days leading up to the meeting. He stated that "personality conflicts" with the administrators at the two schools were the cause of the resignation. There was no confrontation at the meeting — but one woman did say that she was thankful for what Lembke did in his one year teaching at the schools; she also stated that she was sorry there wasn't more discussion regarding his resignation. Lembke was replaced by Michael K. Tieszen.


35 years ago

Harley Miles shared the story of how he returned home to Valley Center after leaving the Navy to start his sand business after winning $900 in a crap game just before he was shipped home. He used that money to start Miles Sand with his father 1/4-mile northwest of West Elementary School near the intersection of 53rd North and the Big Arkansas River. Miles turned his winnings from that crap game into a business that provided him with a six-figure salary.

Dan Doolen of Valley Center was one of three men who pleaded guilty in connection with the theft of 10 head of cattle from Leroy Matson in Kechi. Doolen received probation and was ordered to pay $1,350 in restitution; Gary Issacs of Oklahoma received a similar punishment. A Maize man, Tommy McElroy, was charged with the theft of a Ford Bronco and a 16-foot cattle trailer that were used in the cattle rustling incident; he was sentenced to serve three to 10 years in prison.


30 years ago

Harry Eilert regained his driver's license after two years off the road when a new telescopic lens corrected the macular eye generation in his right eye. The device attached to Eilert's eyeglasses through a hole drilled in the center of one lens. It brought objects at a distance of 20 feet or farther into focus.

Abbie Crossette talked about the macular eye generation that had slowly eroded her eyesight and her ability to do one of her favorite things — read. Crossette shared the story of how the Wichita Public Library came to her rescue with a new program called "Talking Books" sponsored by the National Library Services for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. The service provided books recorded by professional readers on thin, flexible discs. Each participant also received a record player.


25 years ago

Dick Yarnell of Valley Center shared the story of how he became the operations manager at the Wichita Children's Home. Yarnell was laid off from Boeing and took a temporary job as construction coordinator for the Home less than a week later. He was successful in the temporary position and earned the full-time position overseeing daily operations.

Robert Rogers and his fiancé, Charity Davis, were hit with disaster when their home at 53rd North and Meridian was destroyed in a solvent explosion. He was cleaning tools when a hot plate ignited flammable vapors, sending flames through the house and destroying it. Rogers and his fiancé were days away from securing a loan and signing a contract to purchase the house. They were also days away from purchasing insurance. Nothing was left of the house except for rubble. The structural loss was estimated at $35,000 and the content loss was $20,000. A fund was set up for them at Intrust Bank.

20 years ago

Milton Dawson of Valley Center began a battle with acute myelogenous leukemia. He had worked as a pharmacist for nearly 60 years helping those in need. Dawson decided to go to the doctor on a recommendation from Valley Drug's Paul Bryan, for whom he worked part time.

Howard Woods opened H&S Auto Inc. at 6301 N. Meridian. Woods had been retired for one year after selling his company, Valley Trash Service, to Waste Management after 25 years of operation.


15 years ago

The Park City council unanimously voted to annex six homes known as The Bole Addition. Residents of the addition repeatedly fought the annexation and even asked Valley Center to annex them instead. Residents Bill Bole and Gordon Yost were vocal about their displeasure with Park City's decision. They felt their wishes were ignored by Park City and accused the city of attempting to gain land and tax income to "offset debt caused by poor management."

Joe Hite of Hite Dubois ranch appeared in a photo in an issue of USA Today. He was unloading gear at the National Western Stock Show in Denver.


10 years ago

Del Wilson announced that his Presley's convenience store on North Oliver in Kechi would be closing. He said he thought the city needed the convenience store and thanked his longtime and loyal customers. However, he did say that he wished the store had gotten more area support. Wilson said he was trying to find someone to buy the business. The Kechi Chamber of Commerce hoped to find a way for the store to remain open.

Leeker's Family Foods in Valley Center announced it would begin offering curbside and home delivery. Owner and manager Chris Steindler said he was looking for a way for the store to differentiate itself from the rest of the pack. Orders could be called or emailed in, and a convenience charge would be applied accordingly.


5 years ago

The Valley Center Recreation Commission proposed a nine-hole, par 3 golf course on 30 acres of land north of Fifth Street and east of the McKay Petrie Sports Complex. The VCRC already owned half of the land and presented the idea to the school board to ask for the other half.

The sprinkler system at the Valley Center school district office erupted and dumped hundreds of gallons of water into the building. The broken sprinkler caused more than $35,000 worth of damage. Joints between a set of pipes had cracked but the cause of that crack could not be found.





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